Namaste Raviji, Krishnaji or whoever read this comment. The Mahālakṣmī Gāyatrī pointed here does not have 24 akṣara-s. I count 21: om bhūrlakṣmī bhuvarlakṣmīḥ suvaḥ kālakarṇī | tanno lakṣmīḥ pracodayāt || Is not missing the word dhīmahi? Please replay. Thank you! Hari Oṁ śāntiḥ

It refers to Her four arms and two legs as described in the scriptures Tantrasāra and Puraścaryārṇava. These are the six limbs referred in nāma 92. --Krishna.

In name #92, the translation of “śrī-ṣaḍaṅgāyai” is given as having six limbs and specific implements. Does that refer to a specific scripture? Thank you ????????

You may lookup our initiations page and find a suitable guru. You may approach other guru mandalas and request the same as well. Choose one guru and follow the mantra. There is no requirement to get an initiation for the same mantra from several gurus. Instead following the complete process of yantra worship, mantra japa, kavaca, stotra recitation on a daily basis over a long period of time may yield some meaningful results. --Krishna.

The normal practice of those following the puraścaraṇa of any deity mantra, would be to recite the associated mantra in units of 108 consisting of a māla, along with the prescribed āvaraṇa pūja (or Khaḍgamālā recitation, if daily pūja is not feasible), kavacam, stotram etc.      All of this should be done AFTER obtaining an initiation from a practicing guru. One must make an earnest effort to obtain an initiation from a suitable guru before proceeding further. A self-initiation is an option only when one has failed in his/her efforts. There are procedures suggested for self-initiation also and one must follow them earnestly. Besides this, one should follow the bhūta śuddhi, prāṇāyama procedures on a daily basis and if possible, the sṛṣṭi, sthiti and saṃhāra nyāsas on a regular basis. The puraścaraṇa process has been described in a separate article and you may go through it.     Nothing is guaranteed on the material front, but one does witness a spiritual transformation over a period of time. It should be noted that the higher deities such as the mahāvidyās are propitiated for spiritual purposes rather than material and seem to correspond better to such needs. One may choose graha mantras or other lower deity mantras such as Yakṣiṇīs for material needs. Lord Gaṇeśa strikes a great balance for both material and spiritual pursuits with His higher forms leaning more towards the latter than the former.       Reciting of mantras of several deities at the same time is not recommended during the puraścaraṇa process, but it is the norm under the krama process as prescribed by one's guru and tradition. In the krama process, the āvaraṇa pūjas could be specific to a deity on a daily or regular basis and other deity āvaraṇa pūjas are performed during special days. Several deity mantra kavacas and stotras can be recited on a regular basis as per one's initiation and guru's guidance. It is NOT recommended to self-initiate oneself into any krama. --Krishna.

Krishnaji, is there any posibility of finding the initiator for this mantra.? Can u share any details u know of.? calmefab@gmail.com or u may share the details here on the page if it's feasible. Am asking Suryadeva some help. Please..

the dumavati kavacha available at sanskritdocuments website does'nt specify that "if one does not chant her kavacha, one will gain no powers, or face her wrath, loss of money and shortening of lifespan. " does that mean, even if one chants dhumavati mantra without her kavacha, one will still; be able to connect with her energies and be successful in her sadhana? I got into dhumavati because my life reflects the inauspicious side which nature has to offer, and I was initiated into this mahavidya by god in my dream. .. please guide. I do other powerful kavachas, such as matangi, ugra tara, shoolini, saravrtha sadhaka pratyangira, kamala kavachas which protection is more than sufficient,. Is there a necessity to do kavacha of each deity one does sadhana in?! I am asking this because each kavacha is like a number of deities with permutations and combinations of similar deities sometimes, protecting different parts in different kavacha stotras. Is it a hard and fast rule that sadhana of a deity must have the kavacha to be chanted if it is available?

It is implicit. We have not always followed the norm of adding the closing steps for each stotram. You must add the Aṅga nyāsa with digvimokaḥ, dhānam, pañca pūja and samarpaṇam at the end. --Krishna.

It is not a general rule, but specific to certain stotras only. But if you were told to recite in a particular manner by your guru, then please follow the same. --Krishna.

Thank you for all you do. A question: Usually, "digbandhah" is followed by "digvimokahah" towards the end of the kavacham. I see that for the above kavacham, "digvimokah" is missing. Is this correct? Thank you again for your service.